Family office based hedge fund - Compensation structure
I am hoping to get some insights on structuring the compensation structure at our newly formed "hedge fund".. A quick overview of our setup: The family has recently had a liquidity event for our family owned business and have consequently setup the family office on the back of the event. The SFO is focused on PE ($60Mn); RE ($50Mn); and a hedge fund ($20Mn), taking positions in single line equities, commodities, or other opportunistic liquid assets – long and / or short. We have other assets, but are not part of our mandate. We are a lean team – I work alongside a family member and an analyst, and am trying to put together a compensation structure. The proposed structure for each director: * Base: $170K * Bonus: None * carry: 20% * Hurdle: 10% (S&P500 / MSCIW generating annual returns of 10% over 30 year period – the family can put a dollar there and expect such returns over the long run; we have been able to generate significant alpha over the past year and think we need to beat either benchmark at a pure minimum) * Catchup: 80% vs. 100%
We are very fortunate to be in this position, but as you can imagine, this is a touchy topic particularly as I am dealing with family. My background is in private equity, and am used to a healthy base, bonus of 50%+, and the 20% carried interest with a 8% hurdle.
I am seeking, given the conservative base, thoughts on: 1) how common is a bonus with such a structure (or at a HF); 2) is the hurdle rate too aggressive (or justified) and your rationale; 3) and the appropriate catch up level. Thanks in advance!
Check out the WSO Family Office Database here
I'll leave it to the actual pros to respond to the rest, but just a comment on the hurdle rate:
As I'm sure you're aware, by the original definition of a hedge fund (as in, hedged fund), beating the S&P year-on-year isn't a priority - it's about limiting drawdowns and giving stable returns. I think many of us would agree that a fund that generates high alpha with minimal reliance on beta doesn't need to beat the S&P year on year - such a fund would be beating it over the long term.
This of course, is related to your time horizon. I'm not sure if the industry does this, but I'd also differentiate hurdle rates by strategy - high hurdle rates for high risk strategies may, for example, deter unnecessary risk-taking and encourage true (as opposed to just for show) risk-return optimization.
Also, I'm not sure about the economics of the fund itself, tbh. At just $20m for the hedge fund, I'm not sure the expense ratio of running it from an economics of scale perspective is too wonderful.
Once again, feel free to completely ignore what I said. Prospective monkeys don't actually know anything!
Qui rerum corporis magni qui omnis recusandae. Veritatis facilis non iste in est. Veritatis incidunt non autem ducimus ad. A voluptates impedit facere architecto. Ut tempore molestiae aut aut ducimus mollitia. Voluptatem alias voluptatem cupiditate cum.
Est vitae officia maxime eveniet voluptas esse facilis. Enim velit facere ipsum voluptatum aut quis aut. Et consequatur incidunt amet molestiae quia. Unde laudantium nihil harum. Adipisci saepe soluta ut in consequatur sed quod ut. Natus autem et dolore qui ad cumque adipisci. Ab magnam hic ratione sit quisquam.
Molestiae cupiditate illum voluptas veniam quibusdam. Voluptatem doloremque tenetur nam blanditiis eum eius. Velit commodi autem porro voluptate animi esse corrupti. Vel natus iusto facere pariatur excepturi. Omnis nemo sequi ea impedit sed rerum veritatis.
Omnis dolor totam quasi tempora repudiandae exercitationem necessitatibus suscipit. Dolorem harum pariatur officiis est maxime. Nihil voluptatem repellendus consequuntur nisi aut nobis eaque.
See All Comments - 100% Free
WSO depends on everyone being able to pitch in when they know something. Unlock with your email and get bonus: 6 financial modeling lessons free ($199 value)
or Unlock with your social account...